Do You Know Enough About Ovarian Cancer? Most Women Don’t.
Ovarian cancer is more treatable, and possibly curable, in its early stages. A recent study by the World Ovarian Cancer Coalition asked 1,531 women diagnosed with the disease to share their experience before and after diagnosis. Yet in all 44 countries surveyed, very...
What Does a Nurse-Midwife Do Exactly?
Midwives do more than deliver babies. The motto of the American College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) is “Today’s Midwife: With Women, for a Lifetime.” Nurse-midwives support women during pregnancy, labor, delivery, postpartum and afterward. Typically, they learn about the...
Why is Taking Folic Acid so Important? Everything You Need to Know
Why is Taking Folic Acid so Important? Everyone needs folic acid. It helps red blood cells form and grow as well as makes and repairs DNA. For prenatal care, taking folic acid is essential for the growth of the spinal cord in the womb. Because the spinal cord is one...
Five Types of Non-Cancerous Benign Breast Conditions
Five Types of Non-Cancerous Benign Breast Conditions Does finding a lump in your breast always mean cancer? No, most breast changes—even lumps—are benign (non-cancerous). Some breast changes can cause symptoms that are like those from breast cancer, so it can be hard...
Toxic Shock Syndrome: Facts, Causes, and Symptoms You Need to Know
What is Toxic Shock Syndrome? A 16-year-old teenager died on a school field trip from toxic shock syndrome (TSS) in March 2017. The death appears to be linked to the teen’s tampon use. But what is toxic shock syndrome? And why is it linked to tampons? The young...
Hormone Replacement Therapy: What is it and is it Right For Me?
What Is Hormone Replacement Therapy? Hot flashes. Insomnia. Vaginal dryness. Incontinence. Are you looking for relief from these common menopause symptoms? During menopause, your estrogen levels fall. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)—which is also known...
Why is Vaginal Dryness such a Secret?
Vaginal dryness is a common problem, but most women don't talk about it, not even to their doctors. As a woman transitions through menopause, her body experiences decreased vaginal blood flow. This can lead to vaginal dryness, irritation, itchiness, and pain during...
Maternal Mortality – How You Can Protect Yourself
Let’s start with the good news: Infant mortality has reached an all-time low. While this is cause for celebration, a recent analysis by the CDC found that mothers in the United States have a higher rate of dying after giving birth than many other developed countries....
Before Pregnancy: 11 Important Ways to Prepare
What can you do to be ready for your little one? Take care of you! Before you even begin trying to conceive, you can take important steps to prepare your body and your life for a new baby. Planning for Pregnancy 1. Eat Right: Months before you begin eating for two,...
Uterine Fibroids – What Do I Need to Know?
Fibroids are extremely common and affect more than 60% of women. However, even though it sounds a bit frightening that so many women have tumors in their uterus, fibroids rarely turn into cancer and having them doesn’t mean you’re more likely to get uterine cancer....
Curious About How a Hospital-Based Midwife Works?
If you are curious about how a hospital-based midwife works, we recommend that you read a great article from the American College of Nurse-Midwives about how certified nurse-midwives care for patients. Following is an excerpt from the article: "When three midwives...
10 Tips on What to Expect Before Your First Mammogram
Mammograms are able to detect early signs of breast cancers, catching the cancer when it’s more treatable. Many doctors recommend that women begin mammograms at age 40 and have a mammogram every single year. According to the American College of Radiology, there’s a...
What is an Ectopic Pregnancy?
An ectopic pregnancy occurs outside the womb, often in one of the fallopian tubes. To become pregnant, the ovaries release an egg into the fallopian tube on the fourteenth day of a woman’s menstrual cycle. If sperm fertilizes the egg, the egg travels from the...
What’s Hurting Your Sex Drive?
There’s no specific number of times you should be having sex. Yet if you feel like you're not enjoying sex, or you have noticed a decrease in how often you have sex, there may be underlying causes for a low libido. While you won't know for certain what the true issue...
Strength Training for Women
Most women are aware they need regular exercise to strengthen their heart and lungs and tone their bodies. Yet some women resist training for strength because of some common myths. Let’s debunk some of these common falsehoods about strength training. Myth: I don’t...
Skin Care Can Protect You From Pollution
The World Health Organization calls air pollution a "public health emergency." Outdoor air pollution is the cause of 3 million deaths a year. Indoor air pollution caused 6 million deaths in 2016. Air Pollution Can Damage Skin Even if you’re not living in a heavily...
Night Sweats
When you wake up soaking wet after a night of restless sleep, it’s normal to feel confused and even worried. Night sweats are uncomfortable, to say the least. However, you’re not the only one struggling to understand what’s going on with your body. Over 40% of women...
Sorting Facts from Myths about Epilepsy
“I’d been having seizures since I was in grade school and just never knew what they were,” Kevin says. “Before then everyone just thought I was daydreaming or not paying attention. I used to get notes home from the teachers saying, 'Kevin daydreams too much' or 'Kevin...
Domestic Abuse and Women’s Health
Domestic violence is sometimes called intimate partner violence. Intimate partner violence affects millions of women each year in the U.S. It includes physical, sexual, or emotional abuse, as well as sexual coercion and stalking by a current or former intimate...
Who is at Risk for Deep Vein Thrombosis?
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) occurs when a vein is blocked by a blood clot, usually inside a leg. Every year about 500,000 Americans experience DVT; DVT causes death in up to 20% of those cases. While the blood clot can dissolve on its own, the danger comes when part...